Skirk Prospector MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 10 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost1
RarityCommon
TypeCreature — Goblin
Power 1
Toughness 1

Key Takeaways

  1. Skirk Prospector turns goblins into card advantage and quick mana, enabling faster plays and deck cycling.
  2. Its inherent instant-speed flexibility allows strategic sacrifices in response to the shifting game state.
  3. Mana generation is limited to red and sacrificing goblins can diminish creature-based board presence.

Text of card

Sacrifice a Goblin: Add o R to your mana pool.

"I like goblins. They make funny little popping sounds when they die." —Braids, dementia summoner


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Playing Skirk Prospector gives you the ability to turn each of your goblins into potential card advantage. This can be especially handy when you’re sitting on a board full of goblins and need to dig deeper into your deck for answers or threats.

Resource Acceleration: Skirk Prospector is a master at converting your goblin army into precious mana. This speedy little common enables explosive turns where you can deploy more goblins or drop a game-changing spell much earlier than expected, giving you a leg-up in the race for victory.

Instant Speed: The beauty of Skirk Prospector lies in its flexibility. Sacrificing a goblin at instant speed means you can adapt on the fly to the evolving battlefield, ensuring that you’re never caught off guard. Whether it’s during your turn or in response to an opponent’s action, the Prospector ensures that you’re always able to make a strategic move.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Skirk Prospector requires you to sacrifice a Goblin as an additional cost to generate mana, which can deplete your creature base and reduce your board presence if you’re not careful.

Specific Mana Cost: This card’s activation is tied exclusively to red mana. While this synergizes well with Goblin-themed decks, it does limit the card’s utility across a wider variety of deck archetypes.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Although Skirk Prospector itself is a low-cost creature, relying on it for mana acceleration in place of traditional land-based ramp or cheaper mana dorks might become a disadvantage, especially if faster setups are required in a game.


Reasons to Include Skirk Prospector in Your Collection

Versatility: Skirk Prospector offers a flexible mana acceleration option for red-based decks. It can swiftly convert your Goblins into immediate red mana, which is useful in various game situations and strategies.

Combo Potential: This card is a key piece in combo decks, capable of fueling explosive plays. It pairs well with cards that generate numerous Goblins, unlocking the potential for game-winning turns through massive mana availability.

Meta-Relevance: In an environment teeming with creature-centric decks, Skirk Prospector shines by allowing you to maintain pace or even outpace opponents’ strategies, making it a solid inclusion in the face of ever-shifting MTG metagames.


How to beat

Skirk Prospector is a potent tool within the red decks of Magic: The Gathering. This goblin card, which allows you to sacrifice a goblin to add one red mana to your mana pool, can quickly accelerate your mana capabilities and facilitate a fast-paced, aggressive strategy. To counter Skirk Prospector effectively, the key is disrupting the synergy within goblin decks. Targeted removal spells can eliminate the Prospector before it becomes a vital combo piece. Cards like Fatal Push or Path to Exile can handle it efficiently, ensuring that your opponent’s mana flow is stifled, and their goblin tribal strategies are hampered.

Another approach is to employ board wipes, which can clear multiple creatures, including Skirk Prospector, in a single stroke. Supreme Verdict and Wrath of God are prime examples of this strategy. By keeping the board clear, you prevent the accumulation of goblins, which Skirk Prospector thrives on. Lastly, graveyard hate cards, such as Rest in Peace, can interrupt combos that rely on recurring goblins from the graveyard to sacrifice. With these strategies, overcoming the challenge posed by Skirk Prospector becomes a manageable task.


BurnMana Recommendations

Delving into the synergies and interactions of the MTG universe is what keeps the game exhilarating and fresh. Skirk Prospector represents such an interaction, transforming goblins into a resource powerhouse for red decks. Exploring the utility and flexibility that this card offers can significantly enhance your strategies, especially if you’re passionate about tribal goblin themes or looking for that mana boost to unleash powerful spells. Are you seeking to construct a deck with Skirk Prospector as a cornerstone or simply curious about its potential impact? Join us for an in-depth analysis and strategy tips that could turn your next match into a monumental win. Deepen your MTG knowledge and refine your deck-building skills with BurnMana’s comprehensive guidance.


Cards like Skirk Prospector

Skirk Prospector is an intriguing card in Magic: The Gathering, offering a unique twist among mana acceleration options. In comparison, cards like Blood Pet and Stonybrook Banneret offer somewhat related functionalities. Blood Pet, much like Skirk Prospector, allows you to sacrifice a creature for a burst of mana, albeit it provides only black mana and is a one-time use before hitting the graveyard. This contrasts with Skirk Prospector’s ability to repeatedly convert creatures into red mana, which can be quite a strategic advantage in deck setups focused on goblin synergy and combo plays.

Stonybrook Banneret isn’t as direct in providing extra mana but reduces the cost of Merfolk and Wizard spells. While not offering the same immediate mana burst as Skirk Prospector, it can result in a more sustained advantage over the course of a game. The Banneret also enriches tribal strategies, showcasing the diverse approaches within MTG to optimize mana usage. In the sphere of tactical goblin decks, Skirk Prospector stands out for its ability to both accelerate your game and fuel intricate combos by leveraging your swarm of goblin creatures.

Skirk Prospector shines in the context of creature-based strategies, particularly in goblin decks where its repeatable sacrifice ability for immediate red mana can be a game-changer. It’s an essential consideration when building around these themes for its combo enabling capabilities and sheer efficiency in mana generation.

Blood Pet - Tempest (TMP)
Stonybrook Banneret - Morningtide (MOR)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Skirk Prospector MTG card by a specific set like Onslaught and World Championship Decks 2003, there are several reliable options to consider. One of the primary sources is your local game store, where you can often find booster packs, individual cards, and preconstructed decks from current and some past sets. They often offer the added benefit of a community where you can trade with other players.

For a broader inventory, particularly of older sets, online marketplaces like TCGPlayer, Card Kingdom and Card Market offer extensive selections and allow you to search for cards from specific sets. Larger e-commerce platforms like eBay and Amazon also have listings from various sellers, which can be a good place to look for sealed product and rare finds.

Additionally, Magic’s official site often has a store locator and retailer lists for finding Wizards of the Coast licensed products. Remember to check for authenticity and the condition of the cards when purchasing, especially from individual sellers on larger marketplaces.

Below is a list of some store websites where you can buy the Skirk Prospector and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Skirk Prospector Magic the Gathering card was released in 10 different sets between 2002-10-07 and 2023-01-13. Illustrated by 2 different artists.

#ReleaseNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12002-10-07OnslaughtONS 2301997normalblackDoug Chaffee
22003-08-07World Championship Decks 2003WC03 we2302003normalgoldDoug Chaffee
32007-11-16Duel Decks: Elves vs. GoblinsDD1 512003normalblackDoug Chaffee
42011-04-01Duel Decks: Knights vs. DragonsDDG 492003normalblackDoug Chaffee
52014-06-16Vintage MastersVMA 1862015normalblackDoug Chaffee
62014-12-05Duel Decks Anthology: Elves vs. GoblinsEVG 512015normalblackDoug Chaffee
72018-04-27DominariaDOM 1442015normalblackSlawomir Maniak
82019-11-07Mystery BoosterMB1 10602015normalblackSlawomir Maniak
92020-09-26The ListPLST DOM-1442015normalblackSlawomir Maniak
102023-01-13Dominaria RemasteredDMR 1372015normalblackSlawomir Maniak

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Skirk Prospector has restrictions

FormatLegality
HistoricbrawlLegal
HistoricLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderLegal
OathbreakerLegal
GladiatorLegal
PioneerLegal
CommanderLegal
ModernLegal
PauperLegal
PremodernLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
ExplorerLegal
PredhLegal
PennyLegal
TimelessLegal

Rules and information

The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Skirk Prospector card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.

DateText
2022-12-08 You can sacrifice any Goblin you control to activate Skirk Prospector’s activated ability, including Skirk Prospector itself. Note that once you sacrifice Skirk Prospector, you won’t be able to activate its ability again, so if you’d like to sacrifice multiple Goblins including Skirk Prospector for mana, be sure to sacrifice Skirk Prospector last.

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